Want an inside edge on who's up-and-coming in publishing? Keep up with indie presses

John J. Kim / Chicago Tribune

Quimby's, in Wicker Park, is an excellent place to shop for books published by independent presses -- which is essential to having an inside edge on publishing, says Biblioracle columnist John Warner.

Quimby's, in Wicker Park, is an excellent place to shop for books published by independent presses -- which is essential to having an inside edge on publishing, says Biblioracle columnist John Warner. (John J. Kim / Chicago Tribune)

Back in the day, when I could still make at least a plausible attempt at being culturally with it, my friends and I would monitor the latest music coming out of independent record labels.

In the ’80s and ’90s, the indies were where it was at, music-wise. U2 was with Island Records, which had origins in Jamaica and ska and reggae music. I.R.S was the original home of the Police and R.E.M. SubPop was the epicenter of Seattle’s grunge scene, being first to release Nirvana and Soundgarden music.

The indie music labels were both the starting place for acts that would become huge as well as a refuge for artists who weren’t going to become huge, but who could generate fervent passions among a select fandom. When Nirvana made a splash with their “Nevermind” album released by the major label DGC (David Geffen Company) Records, those of us who were tuned into the indie scene could sagely nod and say we saw it coming for a long time.

This is a long way of saying that if you’re not paying attention to independent publishers, you should. For one, you’re missing out on some great books. For two, you’re missing the chance to lord your superior knowledge and taste over others in your social circle. When they rave about the new Valeria Luiselli novel, “Lost Children Archive,” that they read about in The New York Times Book Review you can counter with, “Oh, I know, she’s great. I’ve been reading her for years, back when she started with Coffee House Press.”

Coffee House, out of Minneapolis, is one of those indie presses that punches above its weight, scoring a recent Pulitzer Prize finalist with “In the Distance” by Hernan Diaz and as the U.S. publisher of Bailey’s Women’s Prize for Fiction title, “A Girl Is a Half-Formed Thing” by Eimear McBride.

Indie presses are where you’re going to first encounter future international superstars. Roxane Gay’s first book, “Ayiti,” a collection of short stories, was published by Artistically Declined Press, which doesn’t even appear to be publishing anymore. It makes my copy seem even more special.

Chicago-based indie Haymarket Books has one of those superstars on its roster as we speak: Eve Ewing is producing books like “Electric Arches” and the forthcoming “1919,” which are called poetry, and are that, but also more.

Another Chicago-based indie, Featherproof Books, launched the careers of writers like Amelia Gray, Lindsay Hunter and Blake Butler, all of whom have gone on to release books with major publishers. If you saw the Netflix series “Maniac,” starring Emma Stone and Jonah Hill, and you’d been tracking Featherproof, you would’ve recognized the name of the series co-creator, Patrick Somerville, from his 2010 Featherpoof book, “The Universe in Miniature in Miniature.”

Chicago’s Curbside Splendor also provides outlets for interesting, experimental writers as well as books that have unique appeal to Chicago audiences, like “Disco Demolition: The Night Disco Died” by Dave Hoekstra with Steve Dahl, and “Empty Bottle Chicago: 21+ Years Music/Friendly/Dancing” an amazing pictorial/oral history of the legendary club.

Because of their limited resources, it’s harder for these indies to extend into the mainstream places where big publisher books are favored.

This also means the best place to find books by indie publishers are indie booksellers, like Quimby’s or City Lit or Barbara’s or Unabridged or Women & Children First, or any of the other independent stores I don’t have space to list.

All the cool readers are doing it.

John Warner is the author of “Why They Can’t Write: Killing the Five-Paragraph Essay and Other Necessities.”

Book recommendations from the Biblioracle

John Warner tells you what to read based on the last five books you’ve read.

1. “The Girl With No Name: The Incredible Story of a Child Raised by Monkeys” by Marina Chapman

2. “Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine” by Gail Honeyman

3. “Clan of the Cave Bear” by Jean Auel

4. “Something in the Water” by Catherine Steadman

5. “The Great Alone” by Kristin Hannah

— Cathy K., Huntley, Ill.

In the spirit of the column, everyone will be getting a recommendation from an independent publisher. For Cathy, I’m dipping into the catalog of Ig Publishing, for a compelling novel set in the world of competitive figure skating: “The Hopeful” by Tracy O’Neill.

1. “Pachinko” by Min Jin Lee

2. “I Always Loved You” by Robin Oliveira

3. “The Housekeeper and the Professor” by Yoko Ogawa

4. “Chasing a Croatian Girl: A Survivor’s Tale” by Cody McClain Brown

5. “Our House” by Louise Candlish

— Marge D., Antioch, Ill.

Catapult Press not only publishes good books, they offer classes in all varieties of writing. If you’ve got an urge to start writing and you’re fixed in location, it’s worth seeing what they have on offer. For Marger, I think Nicole Chung’s “All You Can Ever Know” a memoir of her own adoption will hit the spot.

1. “Lilac Girls” by Martha Hall Kelly

2. “Women of the Silk” by Gail Tsukiyama

3. “Lincoln's Last Trial: The Murder Case That Propelled Him to the Presidency” by Dan Abrams and David Fisher

4. “The Tuscan Child” by Rhys Bowen

5. “Clementine: The Life of Mrs. Winston Churchill” by Sonia Purnell

— Barb K., Aurora

This is a book club pick, so the pressure is on. Graywolf Press’ “Out Stealing Horses” by Per Petterson should satisfy this group.